Re: states/provinces/counties

[CJ FINE <cbmvax!uunet!BRADFORD.AC.UK!cuvmb.cc.columbia.edu!C.J.Fine>]

Dave re Ivan:
>
> >You have my emphatic vote against translating names or parts of names.
> >That NY is called Nueva York in Spanish means that a Spanish speaker
> >will recognise {la cnino.iork} (or whatever) as NY.  But it won't mean
> >anything to a Russian or Bulgarian lojbani, unless he knows English
> >and is aware that "new" means `{cnino}'.  He will expect {la niu.iork.}
>
> I think I agree here.  Would anyone here agree if I said that Jesus was
> born in the House of Bread (or Breadhouse or some such city-sounding name?)
> Didn't think so.  But that's what Bethlehem means, place of bread.  And how
> much are you going to translate?  "York", going far enough back, comes from
> "place of boars", I am informed.  Nobody would want to refer to N.Y. as
> "new boarplace" or something.

As I have already indicated in another mail, I agree too. Incidentally,
"York" is "place of boars", but not originally - the sequence went
something like this:
        Eborac - Celtic, of unknown meaning (latinised as Eboracum)
        Eoforwic - Anglo-Saxon folk-etymology: place of boars
        Jorvik - Danish (Viking) transformation - half-meaningless
        York

        kolin
                        c.j.fine@bradford.ac.uk